Rice with mushrooms

◼  They made me a present of a box with dehydrated Maitake mushrooms of ecological production, until that moment I had never tried them. And I didn´t really know very well how to prepare them, so I decided on rice with mushrooms.

The box contained 30 grams of dehydrated mushrooms; I put them to soak in water overnight to hydrate them.

The next day, I prepared them as follows:

• Cover the bottom of a paella pan with  extra virgin olive oil  to sauté, first, one finely chopped onion; then, add some finely chopped garlic cloves when the onion is softened; stir and let make some minutes over a low heat.

• Add a spoonful of  Herbes de Provence , stir and let make some minutes.

• Cut the mushrooms into small pieces, add and stir. Add ½ coffee cup of round-grain brown rice, stir and cover everything with water. Keep over a high heat until the water begins to boil, add salt (to taste) and reduce the heat. Time required, approximately, an hour.

◼  Ideas to repeat and, besides, to have always on hand together with dried legumes and rice in the pantry.

>> see more rice recipes

                   

Mediterranean Savor: Golden noodle soup

◼  I made this soup with the stock obtained from cooking some chickpeas when preparing hummus (chickpea paste).

Add a little water to the stock to reduce the concentrate and rectify the salt. Bring to boil and add the noodles; when ready (practically in less than 10 minutes), pour the sauté garlic with sweet paprika over the soup.

◼  For the sautéed garlic: Chop one clove garlic finely, sauté it in a little extra virgin olive oil and add the tip of a coffee spoon of sweet paprika.

>> see more broths recipes

                   

Mediterranean Savor: Hummus

◼  Cook the  chickpeas  with an onion, some  bay leaves  and salt to taste. I always use the same quantity of chickpeas, 200 grams.

◼  In a mixing bowl (with capacity for 1 liter) put the drained chickpeas, 4 or 5 sliced cloves garlic, a drizzle of  extra virgin olive oil  and salt (quantity to taste), the juice of a large  lemon  and a tablespoon of ready-made  Tahini  paste.

◼  Beat the mixture with an electric mixer until you get a paste with creamy texture; in case more liquid is needed, add a little of the stock from cooking the chickpeas or else lemon juice; this will depend on the taste of the one who is preparing the hummus.

◼  Place the paste in the refrigerator for a few hours; when you are going to use it, you can serve it a serving platter garnished with sweet paprika and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

◼  I like to make salads, with beetroot, zucchini, cucumber or radishes, cut into very thin slices to prepare some toast with Hummus, especially for dinner time.

>> see recipes made with chickpeas broth 

                   

Recipe made with tradition, Sephardi rice.

Sephardi rice is a recipe created by my brother, based on an ancient Sephardi recipe. It is a carrot stew served with rice and very spicy savor; well, as my brother comments, if you catch a cold, you eliminate all the viruses and become new.                        

I was surprised by the idea, so I adapted his recipe to my taste, with less spicy. As I use whole grain rice, it is the first thing I prepare, so while the rice is on the boil, I prepare the stew.                                       

In a saucepan sauté finely chopped onion in extra virgin olive oil over a low heat; when the onion is softened, add a few finely chopped cloves garlic, stir and sauté for a few minutes; add a wooden spoon of Provence herbs (the measure to aromatize is always to taste), sauté for a few minutes and add some tomatoes, peeled and diced; stir and cover the saucepan to make the sauce.      

When the sauce is ready, add the diced carrots, stir and add a dried chili pepper (or to taste), a pinch of sea salt to taste and cover with water to cook, cover and simmer. My brother also adds a splash of white wine, but it is optional.

And for the rice, I use a blend of wholegrain, basmati and wild black rice. When I serve the dish, pour a few drops of lemon directly over the rice, it gives a really special touch.

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

 


800 g  carrots , 3 medium  tomatoes , 1 large onion,4 cloves garlic,  Provence herbs , 1 dried chili  pepper (or more, if desired), 1  lemon ,   extra virgin olive oi l , 1 teacup  whole grain rice , sea salt (to taste).

>> see more rice recipes

                   

Family recipe, el potaje (Spanish chickpea stew)

When the first cold days of autumn arrive, I always feel like the Spanish chickpea stew. I prepare it as I have seen it make to my mother, who in her turn learned it from her mother. They are recipes that go from one generation to another and no one writes because they are easy to remember.

“Potaje” is a stew with vegetables and legumes, to which add, once made, a stir-fry with garlic and (sweet or spicy) paprika.  I remember my father really liked spicy food; for this reason, he put some drops of Tabasco sauce on his plate (well spicy) because my mother prepared the garlic stir-fry with sweet paprika; since, as a rule, little children do not like spicy very much.

Today, all of us prepare the stew with a spicy touch, adding some dried chili pepper during the cooking or using spicy paprika. But my mother and my brother, besides, add Tabasco sauce on their plates.                  

The stew we prepare in my family is as follows:

• Leave the small white beans and chickpeas to soak overnight.  The next day, place the legumes in a stew pot and fill with cold water.  
• When legumes are half cooked, add diced potatoes, sliced carrots and a pinch of sea salt (to taste),  cover and let it simmer.  
• When the legumes start to be tender with the help of a skimmer and a fork, mash some of them and some of the potatoes to give the stew a thicker texture, stir and leave it to simmer. 
• When all the ingredients are cooked, add the spinach, previously washed and cut. 
• Meanwhile, in a skillet heat extra virgin olive oil, add sliced cloves garlic and when golden brown, remove the skillet from heat and let cool the oil down. Add a large spoon of paprika (sweet or spicy, as desired), stir and pour it over the stew in the stew pot. Stir and ready. 

◼ My mother adds, at the start of the cooking, a coffee cup of whole grain rice, so the stew has a high nutritional value. Instead, I like accompanying the stew by a large slice of (kamut or whole wheat spelt or rye) bread. 

◼ In ancient times, what to have been known was that the food prepared in a traditional way and with fresh seasonal ingredients, was healthy and that the combinations among foods, many of them come from the old farmers, were right to keep good health. 

◼ Today, with the advances of science, we are told that if we combine legumes with cereals, we get a high quality protein. 

◼ The stew the same as vegetable stocks are dishes that the day after they have been prepared they are still tastier because the savors have been concentrated. They are very simple dishes, with few ingredients, easy to prepare and very nutritious.

Ingredients:

100 g white beans 

100 g Pedrosillano chickpeas (or another variety) 

4 large potatoes 

2 large carrots 

4 cloves garlic 

170 g  spinach  (previously picked over and washed)

 paprika  (sweet or spicy)

 extra virgin olive oil 

sea salt (to taste)

1/2  coffee cup whole grain rice (if desired)

>> see more stew recipes

                   

Family recipe, pumpkin cream soup.

My mother was telling me stories about the family when she said:          

-“You knew, in the past cream soups were made for supper”                               

-“And how?” I replied to her, since before there were no electric mixers.

She laughed and went on speaking:            

-“While we lay the table and continue talking, we are going to prepare a cream soup, which was very typical at my parents´ house; besides, it is very easy to prepare and only consists of two ingredients,  pumpkin and potatoes, which are cut into small dices”                      

– “To know the measure, it is very easy, half of one and half of another. We put them in the saucepan and fill with water, when it boils we add a pinch of sea salt and reduce heat. From time to time, we have to stir so that the ingredients go undoing”

- “You will see how a cream soup of more intense color is forming than when it is used an electric mixer. When it is ready, we prepare a stir-fried with sliced garlic and sweet  paprika , which is something very typical of Castilian cuisine; then, we pour it into the saucepan, stir and ready”. 

>> see more cream soup recipes